IWC Unveils Big Pilot’s Watch Shock Absorber XPL
IWC Schaffhausen has presented the Big Pilot’s Watch Shock Absorber XPL at the digital Watches and Wonders exhibition, the first watch to feature the brand’s patented new shock absorber system. Developed over eight years, the SPRIN-g PROTECT system is based on a cantilever spring that suspends the movement inside the case. Thanks to its perfect form and the use of Bulk Metallic Glass (BMG), the spring protects the movement against the g-forces generated during impacts on the watch. In impact tests conducted at the Cavendish Laboratory at the University of Cambridge, a protected movement has survived accelerations in excess of 30,000 g.
From the pioneering days of flying to the supersonic jets used in naval aviation today, pilots operate under extreme conditions in cramped cockpits surrounded by sharp-edged metal objects. Therefore, extraordinary robustness has always been one of the most important functional requirements for IWC’s pilot’s watches. In recent years, the Swiss luxury watch manufacturer has taken robustness to ever greater heights by using exceptionally durable and scratch-resistant materials such as Ceratanium®. After an 8-year engineering journey, IWC has now succeeded in pushing the limits of what is physically possible in movement shock protection.